


Lock-down series

by DreamDrop



Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Auguste (Captive Prince) Lives, Cross-Posted on Tumblr, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, M/M, damen and laurent power through lock-down together, damen is the next internet sensation, fitness influencer damen, lock-down, yeah I live for this tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:01:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27243121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamDrop/pseuds/DreamDrop
Summary: Damen and Laurent handle the lock-down together. Like every couple they have their highs and lows in this stressful time.
Relationships: Damen/Laurent (Captive Prince)
Comments: 16
Kudos: 122





	Lock-down series

**Author's Note:**

> Hello my dear readers,  
> here is the lock-down series which I already posted on tumblr :)  
> (https://dreamdropxoxo.tumblr.com/post/630786973806772224/lock-down-story-part-xi)  
> Have fun and let me know what you think!

Laurent stared blankly at the bookshelves in their living room. He really didn‘t know what to do with himself. It was day three of the lock-down, nobody knew how long it would last in the end. He had been ordered to do home-office and now he didn‘t have to commute, nobody could coerce him to work some more shortly before he wanted to leave the office, Auguste wasn‘t there to force him to regular breaks and the cases came in much slower than normally.

All in all, the whole situation caused an immense decrease in work-load. Today he had had not more than two meetings, one with the partners to decide how they would handle their law firm and a second one with his brother, where Auguste said he would finally take a vacation from work because now there was not enough to do anyway and he wanted to remodel his garage. Additionally, Laurent had finished up two cases, they wouldn‘t even have to go to court because both sides in both cases wanted a settlement. And now he had nothing to do anymore.

He was at a loss. The last time he had had so much free-time was probably before college. He realized that Damen was right, he was a fucking workaholic. He refused to let the situation get the better of him. He was Laurent de Vere and he would power through boredom, confinement, and the quarantine in general by sheer power of will.

Laurent just wanted to reach out to get the first book off the shelf when he heard the door click. It was Damen, because who else would it be?

“Sweetheart?“ Old habits die hard. Where should Laurent be if not at home? It was not like he could go somewhere.

“In the living room,“ Laurent answered nonetheless. He heard footsteps and then his boyfriend of almost ten years walked around the corner.

Damen was sweaty but he looked very happy. Laurent couldn‘t stop the smile that tugged on the corner of his mouth. The red workout shirt clung to Damen‘s skin, his curls were plastered to his forehead and his pants hung low on his hips. He looked delicious. Laurent let his gaze wander up and down over his form. He would probably never see enough of Damen. The man had ruined him for everyone else.

His conjecture was immediately proofed when Damen came over and planted a kiss on the top of his head. “I am going to take a shower.“ He smiled down at Laurent, the dimples in his cheeks the most adorable thing in the whole world, turned around and made his way to their master bathroom.

Laurent followed him, it‘s not as if he had anything else to do, and watching Damen shower was certainly not the dumbest thing to do right now.

“How was your workout?“ He had a fantastic view of Damen‘s ass while he walked behind him. It was a mighty fine ass. When Damen pulled the shirt over his head to drop it into the workout-laundry bag, Laurent could admire his back even better. The V-shape of his torso was worth of being worshipped. Not that Laurent would ever tell him. He suspected, Damen knew it anyway.

“Fine. But I really thought it would be more diversified. It was a bit boring if I am being honest.“ Damen shrugged his shoulders, pushed the pants over his hips and turned around. Laurent stood, leaning against the doorframe of their bathroom, and enjoyed the view provided to him by one very sexy boyfriend. Damen grinned when he saw Laurent‘s look. “Care to join me?“

“No, thank you, I already showered and I relish being able to just watch you like that.“ The thing was, Laurent somehow enjoyed the time he had with Damen now. Normally, they both worked a lot, saw each other only two to three hours a day and then both of them were exhausted and needed some time to recuperate from their workday. Now, however, they spent almost the whole day with each other and it was like a honeymoon.

Damen grinned, and then stepped under the shower. The crazy guy didn‘t even wait until the water warmed up. It had to be freezing. Laurent saw the goosebumps all over his body. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from making any noise. Damen looked over to him, a knowing look on his face. Yes, the idiot knew exactly what he was doing. 

He started to shampoo his hair and remarked, in a nonchalant tone of voice, “you know, sweetheart, it would do you some good if you got a bit of fresh air today too. How about I get our parasol out of the garage and fix you a spot in the backyard? You could read there and get fresh air, two in one.“ Before Laurent could protest, he added, “and it would really reassure me if I knew you were living healthy and getting enough Vitamin D.“

Laurent obviously couldn‘t decline now, even if he wanted to. He sighed. “Fine, if you insist.“ Damen smiled, brightly and full of joy. “You could watch me tomorrow while working out, if you don‘t have a meeting, that is.“

Oh. Yes. That was an idea. A good idea even. Laurent shrugged. “Sure, if I don‘t have any meetings, I could come and watch you tomorrow.“ 

He would absolutely block the time from nine to eleven AM in his calendar.

\---

“Sweetheart, I am going outside, do you have time to join me?“ Damen asked his boyfriend, who sat on his desk in his office. His brow furrowed and deep in thought.

Laurent looked up, the blue of his eyes still startling even after all these years. Damen smiled. He really loved the man. It was almost ridiculous how happy only one look of those blue eyes could make him. Laurent‘s lips parted, as if he wanted to say something, but then he clicked his mouth shut, nodded and stood.

Damen was surprised. Normally it was always a fight of epic proportions to get Laurent to go outside. The fresh air was treated as if it had personally offended him.

Only the day before had Damen set their parasol up by the iron bench in their backyard. He had used all the blankets and cushions they didn’t need inside the house to make the place as comfortable as possible. He had moved the small, matching table from their garage next to it and then forced Laurent to read outside for an hour.

Now Damen set up his training equipment in the backyard while Laurent lounged on the bench and watched him.

The instructor on this video was funny and really knew her moves but it was not challenging enough for Damen. He didn‘t remember how many sporty, grinning people he had watched working out in the last days but there were many. Yet, nobody caught his attention or could make him want to train to more of their videos/live streams.

With a sigh he stood after one hour of mostly motivational screaming and pounding beat. Laurent still observed him with a smirk on his lips. “Not satisfied?“

“No.“ Damen watched him closely. “I think I need some more exercise.“ A suggestive smile tugged at the corner of his mouth and Laurent raised an eyebrow. “Do you now?“

“Yes. And I happen to know a very flexible and surprisingly persevering partner for what I had in mind.“ He strode over. Laurent blinked up at him, an innocent look on his face. “You do?“

“Yes. He is incredibly beautiful, loves to be right and is very stubborn. You do not happen to know who I am talking about?“ Damen bent down and took Laurent‘s hand in his, he kissed each of his fingertips then his knuckles.

“I have no idea. However, he must be an amazing man,“ Laurent teased. His eyes went from a pale and icy blue to the indigo of his button-up. Damen observed how his tongue darted out of his mouth and liked over his bottom lip. Gods, this man was beyond tempting.

He lifted Laurent up, who promptly wrapped his long legs around Damen‘s hips. “Well, there you are absolutely right. And I am going to show him how amazing he is right now.“

Laurent chuckled and only shook his head. “Really? Are you now resorting to cheap flirtation to get me into bed?“ But he clung to Damen nonetheless. One of his hands burried in his dark curls and then Damen had to support himself with one hand on the wall of their house because Laurent kissed him very skilfully. Whenever Laurent kissed him like that, unrestrained, hungry and passionate, Damen‘s knees got weak.

He still remembered the time when Laurent, then cute 20 years old, had first kissed him. Unsure, clumsy and oh so innocent. Those times were over and Damen, although thinking back fondly, didn‘t miss them at all. No, now Laurent kissed him with all he got and it was bewitching.

When he wrenched his mouth away, Laurent‘s lips were immediately brushing along his jaw, sucking on the tender flesh of his throat and pressing kisses into the skin right over Damen‘s pulse point. He took some steps into the direction of their kitchen door.

“Stop it, sweetheart, or I might run into something.“ Damen had one hand on Laurent‘s back, the other on his ass while he supported him. A groan escaped him when Laurent‘s teeth nipped on his laryngeal prominence.

“Then you better concentrate.“ Laurent‘s voice was calm but with a teasing edge and that tone never failed to make Damen shudder. He stumbled in through the kitchen door, crashed Laurent against the next wall and kissed him roughly.

Safe to say that neither of them was bored for a long time after that. Damen felt confident that the lock-down would do them and their relationship some good.

\---

“How about you start your own home workout stream?” When Laurent had asked this question the day before, Damen had really asked himself why he hadn’t thought about it sooner. He had all the equipment, was a trained chiropractor and fitness instructor and had enough time to just do it.

He sat down and started drafting his first set of training with alternatively easier method for people who were not as sporty, muscled or simply motivated as he was. It occupied him for half a day and that was much better than to just stare at the windows and asking himself if he should clean them once again.

When he went outside to install the camera, he saw, to his surprise, his boyfriend kneeling in the dirt in their backyard.

“Sweetheart, what are you doing there?”

“Gardening, Damianos, don’t ask stupid questions.” Laurent didn’t even look up while he was weeding their former flowerbed which was overgrown und messy.

“And why are you doing that?”

Laurent sighed, as if he didn’t have the patience to explain every miniscule detail to Damen, but contrary to what one could think, Damen knew his boyfriend had all the patience in the world for him. “Because it looks horrible and I have nothing better to do. I can’t stand for our backyard to look like a battlefield.”

Damen nodded, it made perfect sense. Laurent was a perfectionist and his nature didn’t allow him to let this state of disorder go on like that. “Am I disturbing you, if I start my workout recording now?”

“No, as long as I am not in your video I am perfectly fine.” Laurent finally looked up and then his eyebrow climbed up his forehead. “Are you sure you want to wear that while you start with whatever you intend to do?”

“A live stream, Laurent. Don’t talk as if you are 100 years old and slept through the last decades of technological progress. And what is wrong with it? I always wear that while training.”

“You always wear that? Not only here?” The corner of Laurent’s mouth twitched. Damen was honestly confused. “Yes?”

“No wonder they offered you a discount on your gym subscription. Well, then good luck. I will be over here, keeping myself away from your video camera.” Laurent turned back around and continued with his task. Damen still couldn’t understand what was wrong with his outfit. He wore long pants, for God’s sake.

Although he was confused, he started with his training, while he trained he explained the easier execution of the routine and what advantages the different exercises had. He realized while drafting the training plan that he could include quite a bit of his chiropractor knowledge. It was fun and very satisfying.

After two hours of grueling training, he stopped the stream and posted the video on YouTube too. Nik promised to watch it and give feedback as soon as he finished with work. Then he went to shower and finally helped Laurent with his gardening. Which meant that he could help him move the bigger stones and pots full of dirt and weed.

Laurent was a mess, his face full of smutches, his hair messy with the occasional twig and leaf stuck in it, his clothes dirty, and yet, he looked very satisfied after all the work. Damen drew him closer and kissed him. He was sweaty again and decided to join Laurent for another shower.

This continued for some days more and suddenly Damen’s account on YouTube exploded, his live stream had thousands of followers and Damen didn’t know what had happened. He did what every responsible boyfriend would do in that situation; he ran to Laurent, a bit hysterical and demanded an explanation.

Laurent, calm as one can be took his laptop from him and made a quick google search. Then he said, dead-pan, “well, it looks as if I am dating the next internet sensation. Some important guy found your videos and shared them, people love you and now you have a lot of followers.”

Damen gaped. “What?”

“Yes, congratulation, Damen. I bet half of the followers just stare at your arms while you do all those push-ups.” Laurent laughed when he gave him his laptop back. Damen sat down, absolutely shocked and did a quick google search. It was true, the singer of a very famous band, Lazar Lafeu had mentioned in a telephone interview that he killed his new found free time with Damen’s training video. He had said, “If we can’t go on our tour I can at least look at all these nice Akielon muscles. And even better, the guy has a fully functional brain, very sexy.”

Damen seriously didn’t know what to do with his new found internet fame. He decided to ignore it and just continued with his videos like before. The only difference was, that after every video he took ten minutes to answer questions of his followers. What startled him the most was that people started to notice everything about him.

They complimented the color of his façade, which was a very very pale mint, picked by Laurent. They asked where he had purchased his yoga mat. They discussed the circumference of his bicep. He even understood why Laurent had been so amused by the choice his outfit. It was because his loose fitting tank top gaped open whenever he didn’t stand and provided a deep look to his chest and stomach.

His follower called it the sweetest tease ever, they begged him to keep wearing them and Damen, who never had a problem with being ogled did exactly that. The question if he would do a training without a shirt however, was firmly answered in the negative.

Laurent had finished weeding their whole backyard and even started planning new flowers. Their local gardener had started to deliver the plants directly to one’s doorstep and Laurent took full advantage.

Damen had been overjoyed to realize that Laurent truly enjoyed his new hobby. He could kneel in the dirt for hours and didn’t care even one bit how messy the work could be sometimes. Right now he planted rose bushes while Damen was in the last two minutes of his live stream.

“Fuck! Damn it.” Laurent’s voice was muffled but still very clearly audible. Damen’s head shot up, “Sweetheart?”

“I’m alright. Just ignore me.” Laurent smiled pained and hurried inside. Damen didn’t even look at the stream when he shut it down and ran behind his boyfriend. Laurent had his hand under the water in their kitchen. The stream tinted red. Damen felt the nausea grow, not because of the blood in general, but because it was LAURENT’s blood.

“What happened?”

Laurent sighed. “My hand slipped.”

“Show me.” Damen took his hand carefully in his own. There was a very long gash in the palm of Laurent’s left hand. It looked horrible and would need stiches. He was once again glad that as chiropractor he had studied together with the physicians for four years. He could do the stiches at home.

“Stay here. I will go get my medical kit.”

The next day, Laurent lounged on his bench in the shade because he had decided to take a break from gardening for a day when Damen started his stream. He apologized for the abrupt ending of the stream but his followers were so over the moon that Damen had a boyfriend that they didn’t care at all.

It was no surprise that the whole ten minutes after the training were filled with questions about his relationship and Laurent in general. He informed them that the mysterious boyfriend preferred to stay mysterious but that he was fine and only needed four stiches.

The fans were somewhat disappointed that they didn’t get to know Laurent but accepted the decision with grace. However, they didn’t give up completely. Over the course of the next day Damen was asked random questions concerning Laurent. They varied from, “Is he younger, older or the same age as you”, over “Is he beautiful?”, to “What is his job?”. Damen answered them with permission from Laurent with, “younger”, “yes”, “He’s a lawyer”.

Then a day came when Damen didn’t install the camera the same way as always because he did a later training and the sun would otherwise be too bright. He had told Laurent about it the day before and even on the same morning but Laurent was not very attentive to details that didn’t concern him directly. Thus it came that he walked right through Damen’s stream. It was not so bad because only his lower half was recorded, but it caused an uproar.

Damen could understand it, because Laurent’s ass looked damn hot, even in the video and everybody was curious before. His fans asked about Laurent even more often and the blond man finally seemed to give in, at least in typical Laurent fashion. He answered some of the questions about himself from the off.

It was hilarious, because Laurent had a wicked kind of humor. When one guy asked if he could see him just once, Laurent answered, “Sorry, I think I am too much to handle for you, so no. There were people who actually crashed their car because of my face.”

The fans asked Damen if it was true and he had to confirm it. He told them that he almost fell down a staircase when he saw Laurent for the first time. And in his humble opinion Laurent only grew more beautiful with the years.

\---

Laurent leaned back in his office chair. Damen had just left for the garden to start with this afternoon session. Right then, it was too hot for Laurent to join him. He preferred to stay inside the house. He had finished work some hours ago, as he essentially took a vacation.

Laurent opened the live stream of Damen’s training, amused over the fact that Damen looked up towards his window multiple times, while he set everything up. He was not the only person who noticed. People immediately started asking what he was looking for. They couldn’t see the window, but they observed how Damen’s eyes strayed to a point above the camera.

Damen, now more adapted to his newfound internet fame, looked in the comments section and laughed. “I am just a bit sad over the fact that I am alone today.”

The comment section exploded.

**CrazyL: Where is Laurent?**

**Lola123: Is he alright?**

**OrlantTheFirst: Obviously he is alright otherwise Damen wouldn’t be here?**

**Lola123: Yes but then where is he?**

And so on. Laurent found it highly amusing. Especially, when Damen scrunched his nose up in the most adorable expression. He held back a coo. 

“He’s inside the house. Today is too hot for him. These people from the north don’t even know what hot means.” A discussion they had had multiple times already. It itched in Laurent’s fingers to write a comment about how wrong Damen was and that this weather deserved the description of hot. He held himself back. 

It was not necessary to comment anyway, as the chat immediately started discussing if Damen was right or if Laurent was right. They split in two relatively even groups. It was hilarious. 

Laurent absolutely rooted for the It-is-definitively-too-hot-group, while Damen only shook his head at them. 

“It’s cozy warm, not hot. And now enough talking, more doing.” He started with the training, the chat grew more quiet, although not entirely, as there were definitively people who watched because of the view and not because they wanted to get fit. 

Laurent couldn’t fault them. He did the exact same thing. However, it was not as if that was surprising. Watching Damen do his thing was incredibly hot and not in the bad your-clothes-stick-to-your-skin-and-your-face-gets-all-red-and-blotchy kind of way. 

After the training, Damen did his compulsory 15 minutes of answering questions or just talking. It didn’t take long and the topic rotated back to Laurent, especially because Damen looked back up to his window longingly. 

It was so cute, Laurent couldn’t hold back. He stood, opened the window and leaned on the windowsill. “Hello lover." 

Damen’s eyes snapped up and a bright grin spread over his lips. Laurent couldn’t stop the smile from tugging at the corners of his mouth. But it was really too hot. Damen had to be crazy to do sports in this weather. 

"Hello sweetheart. I’m almost finished with training.” Damen’s gaze flickered back to the camera and his laptop. 

Laurent raised an eyebrow. “I know." 

"How do you know that?" 

"I saw.” Laurent grinned when Damen’s jaw fell open. “Would you be a darling and bring me a glass of water when you come back inside?” Without waiting for an answer, Laurent closed the window again and went back to his desk. 

He saw how the comment section exploded. 

**UnderPres: Laurent R U here?**

**Lola123: If you are know that your voice is damn sexy.**

**NikiInTheHouse: Damen is so cute when he smiles like that!**

**IsHeAKing: @Lola123 I know right?!**

He just wrote an answer. **_LaurentV: @UnderPres Yes, I am._**

When Damen’s eyes grew comically wide when he saw his short message, Laurent laughed quietly. “Laurent, is that really you?” Laurent wrote back with a smile. 

**_LaurentV: Yes, it’s me. I am still waiting for that glass of water, Damianos._ **

**This drove them insane.**

**Lola123: Damianos? Your full name is Damianos?**

**Crazy L: Gosh U two R so cute!

\---

Damen was still a little bit surprised how much his followers liked Laurent. Not that he thought it was surprising that people liked Laurent, because he loved the man to death. He was surprised that Laurent opened up to them enough that there was something to be loved.

Most of the time Laurent was a closed off kind of person. Not sharing much of himself or his life. It all changed towards Damen’s most supportive fans. This was a group of maybe twenty people who watched every single training live and then also on YouTube.

They grew to be the biggest fans of Laurent too. And Laurent interacted with them as if he had never done something else in his life.

He cracked jokes, teased them and flirted with Damen from the off. It was charming, sweet and hilarious. Damen couldn’t get enough of it. He looked forward to the 15 minutes of talking at the end of every training almost as much as his fans.

Laurent did not take part in every session Damen made. Maybe twice a week would be more precise, but still, he was always part of it one way or another. Because even when he wasn’t lurching in the comment section, talking from the off or dropping a wet towel over Damen’s head, the people asked about him.

Damen smiled. They were still very curious over how Laurent looked, as they had only seen his fully clothed lower half. But Laurent kept quiet, never telling anything more about himself.

One day, it was hot outside, even for Damen’s standards, it happened again. Damen was maybe in the middle of his training, doing planks, when he saw Laurent come outside from the kitchen. He said nothing when he approached but dropped off another bottle of water and touched his hand to Damen’s forehead.

“Don’t overdo it, you are horrible if you have a headache.” His voice was soft, his fingers cool, and his eyes concerned. “Don’t worry, sweetheart, I will do a lot more stretching today.” Damen gasped. Laurent nodded and went back inside.

When he looked into the comments next, he was hit by people freaking out.

**Lola123: OMG! Laurent was there!!!**

**IsHeAKing: His hands <3<3<3**

**CrazyL: Is Laurent really that pale or…?**

“He really is that pale, also a reason why he stays inside in these temperatures.” Damen smiled when he answered.

After he finished training, he could listen to multiple comments on how Laurent’s hand was much more interesting than his whole training routine. He didn’t feel attacked at all. Laurent HAD very nice hands.

The discussion was further fueled when Nikandros joined the discussion.

**NikiIsInTheHouse: Now, U better take guesses what his hair color is.**

**CrazyL: Just because of Damen I’d say blond. MMW**

**Lola123: No! Laurent’s hair is a light shade of brown.**

**FO691: GR8. Blond definitively.**

Damen laughed. “Nik, I can’t believe you are doing that to me.”

**NikiIsInTheHouse: I need to get my revenge.**

It was hilarious. Damen refrained from answering the hair color question. It would be funny enough if Laurent did it himself the next time.

“Sorry guys, I promised to cook Laurent’s favorite dish today and that takes a while. I will now excuse myself. Have a nice day you all and till tomorrow.” Damen excused himself with a smile on his lips. It was really very funny.

\---

Laurent frowned. This couldn’t be, it made no sense and he hated things that made no sense. He simply refused to believe that this actually happened to him. Even while he lowered himself to the floor did he try to find an explanation.

“Laurent? What are you doing?” Auguste’s voice sounded from the laptop, a bit contorted, not as full as in person. “This makes no sense, Auguste. Am I blind?” Laurent knew he was frustrated and that was never a good sign.

“No, you most definitively are not. What’s the matter?” Auguste immediately sounded worried. “What’s the matter? I finished this damn puzzle that Damianos wanted to bloody start and then abandoned after he finished the fucking frame and now the last piece is missing. I am not admitting defeat. If I have to carve one out of cardboard and paint it myself I am going to finish this.”

It was suspiciously silent after that and Laurent knew exactly what had happened. “Are you laughing at me? You bugger! I can’t believe you.” He raised his head until he could look over the edge of the table and saw how his brother pressed one hand over his mouth, tears in his eyes and the microphone of his computer muted.

Auguste bit his bottom lip hard, while he unmuted his computer. “You know, I think I see the piece. It is behind the tea pot.” Then he had another laughing fit but that was only of secondary importance. Laurent almost cried when he actually found the missing piece and finished the puzzle.

“That was Damen’s idea?” “Yes. He said something along the line of, ‘Come on, Laurent, sweetheart, it will be fun, we can finish the puzzle together. We have enough time and just look at how beautiful it looks.’ And then he had enough after finishing the frame.” Laurent huffed.

“And why did you feel compelled to finish it?” Auguste sounded curious and Laurent sighed. “Because I didn’t want to admit that I couldn’t persist. And then it was fun, until I realized that every damn piece looked exactly the same.”

“Show me.” Laurent lifted the laptop and showed his big brother the 5000 piece puzzle of a forest. “Looks neat. Congrats. You used to love puzzles.”

“I still like them, but I don’t like being abandoned with them when I didn’t even start them.” Laurent set his brother back on the table.

“Where is Damen anyway?” “Outside. He has his afternoon traning session.” Auguste grinned. “I saw some of his videos. He is really a good instructor. And people love him.”

“I know.” Laurent smiled softly, but then he remembered that he was, in fact, still angry about Damen just leaving him to finish the awfull puzzle all by himself. He scowled again.

“What is wrong, Lauri?” Auguste picked up on his mood immediately. Sometimes it was hard having an older brother who loved him to the moon and back and knew everything about him. Especially at times where Laurent didn’t want to talk about it.

“I- It’s stupid. Like really stupid and you will laugh at me, so I won’t tell you.” Laurent sighed. He dragged his fingers through his hair. It had gotten longer again. He could now draw it back in a small bun at the back of his head.

Auguste sobered up immediately. “I promise I won’t laugh.” “That’s what you say now.” Laurent rubbed his hand over his jaw, the stubble there scratching at his skin, he’d need to shave tonight.

“No. I swear I won’t laugh. Lauri, what’s the matter?” A heavy sigh escaped Laurent and he decided to just be forward about the issue. “He doesn’t touch me anymore. He doesn’t tell me I am beautiful anymore and we didn’t have sex in over one week. I don’t know how to talk to him about it without sounding absolutely stupid and I can’t handle it.”

Auguste’s jaw went slack. “What? We ARE talking about Damen here, aren’t we?” Laurent scowled. “Obviously.” “One week?”

Now Laurent laughed but it was devoid of any humor. “Yes. Damen, who couldn’t keep his hands off me at your birthday party, who had an eight hour sex marathon with me, who wanted to fuck me multiple times a day at the start of the lock-down. That exact Damen. I mean, you knew him even before we got together and he was like the biggest player on this green earth.”

Auguste furrowed his brow. “I know. And he doesn’t tell you you’re beautiful?” “No. It’s stupid, really, I know I am. I also know he thinks so, I shouldn’t need to hear it. But usually, he tells me at least twice a day and now he just doesn’t anymore.” Laurent pulled his hair back and put it up in a bun.

“So, the real issue here is not the puzzle he let you finish by yourself but that you are sexually frustrated, uncertain if he still thinks you’re beautiful and don’t know how to talk about it?” Auguste summed the whole thing up pretty neatly. Laurent nodded, defeated.

“Well, I’d suggest, you go out there and just ask him straight forward.” Obviously, Auguste would propose something like that. Laurent sighed. That’s the approach Damen would have chosen too. “You could also appear in his live stream and then let people handle it for you.”

“What do you mean?” Laurent was confused. “We both know how beautiful you are, good genes and all, maybe if his followers catch a glimpse of you, he will realize it too? But I’d still prefer if you went with approach number one.”

Laurent nodded. “Yes, you are right. I should talk to him and if that doesn’t work, there is still option two available. But you don’t think it’s because of me?”

Auguste raised an eyebrow. “Laurent, Damen loves you more than his own life. I am sure it’s just some missunderstanding or something absolutely unrelated to you. Maybe he is tired? With all the training it wouldn’t surprise me. Just ask him, would you?”

Laurent nodded. Yes, he would ask Damen about it. Tonight at dinner maybe. And then everything would resolve itself after one of the lengthy discussions Damen loved so much.

\---

Damen knew something was wrong as soon as he entered the house. Actually, he had known for longer but he had diligently ignored it.

Laurent sat on the sofa in their living room. His long, long legs were curled up under him, his body tense as if ready for a fight. He somehow looked almost vulnerable, as if one word from Damen could destroy him. 

It was surprising, Damen had never seen him like that. Not in all the years they had been dating and not in the years before, when they were only friends.

He also saw how Laurent set his jaw, squared his shoulders and looked up to him, suddenly nothing vulnerable about him anymore.

“Sweetheart?“

"Yes. It‘s me Damianos.“ He sounded scathing. Fuck. Damen was in trouble and he didn‘t know why exactly. It was never easy to read Laurent but when he was angry, he was downright frightening.

His blue eyes were colder than glaciers. It made Damen shiver. "Is something wrong?“

A muscle ticked in Laurent‘s jaw, that was not a good sign. That only happened when Laurent was furious. Which he was very rarely but when he was, Damen normally tried to avoid him. Usually, the anger wasn‘t directed at Damen and it was more intelligent to give Laurent a wide breath in those cases until he had calmed down enough to discuss the reason for his anger.

His boyfriend stood and came over. When he reached Damen, he couldn‘t help but take a step back. Laurent‘s eyes widened for a fraction of a second. He looked almost hurt, then the anger upped to a new level.

"I don‘t know. Is something wrong? You tell me, Damianos.“ Damen flinched. He knew whatever the situation was, him avoiding Laurent’s nearer proximities had made it a thousand times worse.

"Nothing to say?“ Laurent raised his eyebrow and Damen was caught between thinking how beautiful he was and how screwed he himself was.

"I- I don‘t know.“ Damen bit his bottom lip and Laurent bristled with anger.

"You have no idea, do you?“

"I am sorry, I really don‘t.“ Damen tried to touch him, but Laurent swatted his hand away. "Don‘t do that if you don‘t mean it.“

What did he mean with that? Damen didn‘t understand. Did Laurent think he was apologising without meaning it?

"Don‘t touch me if you don‘t mean it.“ Laurent looked up to him through blazing eyes, he looked so angry Damen had never seen him like that.

He took another step back and Laurent laughed. It was devoid of any humour but still, at least he didn‘t look so cold anymore. "I can‘t believe it. For fucks sake Damianos, if my presence is so unbearable to you, you should have said so sooner. I could have gone to Auguste’s for the time being.“

Damen was surprised. What did he mean by that? "Laurent? What‘s wrong?“

"I‘d like to ask you that. You are acting odd.” Laurent crossed his arms before his chest. Not meeting his eyes and Damen knew he had screwed up big time. Normally, if he annoyed Laurent, he would explode, tell him to fuck off and then calm down by himself. Only when the issue was bigger, did Laurent get this cold and distant look on his face.

“What did I do?“

"See? You don’t even realize. Just forget it, I am being silly and I don’t like to make an idiot out of myself. This discussion is over. I will be in my office.” Laurent walked to the door of the living room, didn’t grace Damen with another look and went upstairs.

Damen didn’t know how to handle the situation, especially when Laurent banged the door to his office behind himself. He never acted so hot-tempered. Damen decided to call Auguste. If someone knew what had just happened, then it would be Auguste.

“Damen? What‘s the matter?“

"That’s what I would like to know. Laurent just stormed out of our living room, banged the door and accused me of acting odd.” He could hear how Auguste let out a sigh.

“Gods, Damen, I thought you knew him better. You really don’t know what could be the issue there?”

“No! For fucks sake, Auguste, you need to tell me. I am lost.” Damen sat down heavily on the spot Laurent occupied just some minutes ago. The pillow was still warm and the fabric smelled like Laurent and home.

“I won’t tell you just like that, you two need to figure this one out on your own. But I give you a clue. Just think about what was different this week from all the other weeks in your relationship. I think there were only a few similar instances. Like the time when Laurent had to accompany me to China for business, or the one time you were sick enough for you to keep to bed for a whole week.”

Damen sighed. “Fine. Thank you anyway. Bye Auguste.”

“Bye Damen. Don’t take too long, you know my brother is rather impatient.”

“Yes, I know.” He flopped down on the sofa and thought about the last week. His daily routine didn’t change much. He had his training sessions, one in the morning one in the afternoon. He had cooked lunch and dinner. He had stared at Laurent while he ate, because it was one of the most beautiful sights he ever laid his eyes on whenever Laurent ate what Damen had cooked. He had finished his cores, went for his jogs, watched the new season of the Umbrella Academy while Laurent read his book beside him.

They went to bed together and…

It dawned on him. He shot up.

Only one word fit the whole situation.

**FUCK!**

And that quite literally.

\---

Damen practically ran up the stairs. He rushed to their bedroom and burst through the door. That was a good sign. If Laurent hadn’t wanted him in there, he would have locked the door.

If Laurent hadn’t wanted to see and talk to him, he wouldn’t have entered their bedroom in the first place. He would have gone into his office, locked the door and ignored him for hours.

But Laurent had decided to go into their bedroom and now he stood there. So unbelievably beautiful that something in Damen’s chest squeezed up.

Laurent stared at him. His eyes were still blazing but at the same time, he looked unsure.

“What?”

Damen didn’t even take the time to answer him. He couldn’t help himself when he took the five steps towards the love of his life and kissed him like a starving man.

Laurent froze up, all his muscles locked into place, as if he couldn’t decide what his reaction would be. And then he brought his hands up and buried his long, strong fingers in Damen’s curls. He opened his mouth and kissed back. 

His taste exploded on Damen’s tongue. It was the best fucking thing he ever tasted.

“Fuck. Sweetheart.” He cradled Laurent’s face between his hands. “Fuck. I want you so badly.” He spoke directly into his mouth. He couldn’t bring himself to back away.

Laurent groaned, his grip got tighter and it started to sting but Damen didn’t mind. He wanted, and he wanted so much more.

“You didn’t want me for the last week.” Laurent bit him, viciously but not enough to break skin. It hurt nonetheless but Damen supposed, he deserved it.

“I always want you.” He tilted Laurent’s head back up and kissed him again. He couldn’t stop kissing Laurent. He had denied himself over the last few days, only pecking Laurent on the lips and it had been torture.

Laurent’s tongue licked along his lower lip and he let him in. Damn it, Laurent was an expert kisser, most of all, an expert at kissing Damen in particular, and it had been much too long since they had last done this.

“Didn’t seem like that to me.” Laurent pulled back. He looked like temptation personified. His lips were red and swollen, his hair mussed, and Damen still had his hands at his jaw. His skin looked even paler in contrast to Damen’s much darker complexion.

He was grateful for the lock-down. Laurent looked indecently gorgeous and the less people saw him like that, the better.

Damen ignored the comment and sucked a bruise in the soft, tender skin of his throat. He loved to mark him up, make him look as if he had been ravished all night long, what was true more often than it was not under normal circumstances.

“Damen. You asshole.” Laurent tipped his head back to give him better access. They both knew he loved it when Damen went all savage.

He undressed him in a hurry, because he had waited over a week to touch Laurent again and now there was no patience left to even wait one second longer.

His eyes feasted on all the pale, milky skin, he stared at Laurent’s legs that went on for miles, his gaze zeroed in on the birth mark on his left hip and he flickered his thumbs over two pink nipples.

“I am gonna eat you out until you beg me to fill you up. I will tongue you open until you are dripping for it and then I will finger you till you don’t know your own name. And then, I am going to fuck you long and hard.” Damen almost didn’t know his own voice anymore. He sounded like a beast.

If he was being honest, he felt like one too.

Laurent, however, didn’t care. He tugged Damen close by his hair und responded, “You better keep that promise and don’t think this will make me forget the last week. I want a fucking explanation.”

Damen nodded, swept him up in his arms and tossed him on the bed. “Later.”

“Later,” Laurent agreed and opened his legs for him.

 **For mercy’s sake** , was the last coherent thought in Damen’s mind, before he completely lost it and ravaged Laurent well and thoroughly.

Later, much later, Laurent was spread among their blue satin sheets, looking like an offering to a god. Damen couldn’t take his eyes off him. It would be a very lucky god that saw him like that, but Laurent was here, with him, in their bed, looking so satisfied because Damen spent the last hours fucking him out of his mind.

“Now tell me, Damianos, why didn’t you do that sooner?” Laurent had his eyes closed. He sounded relaxed, satisfied and curious.

“Well…” Damen rubbed his neck, still staring at his boyfriend. “One of the fans recommended a blog to me where different people talk about lock-down and currently relevant topics. She thought I would fit right in there and that the owner of the blog is very much interested in me and my videos.”

Laurent raised an eyebrow, still, his eyes were closed. “And?”

“There was this article about sex and lock-down and how some people felt really pressured by their partners to have more sex and that they couldn’t talk about it with them and that it was really bothering them and that they felt uncomfortable in their own home because they always had to be ready and wanting and weren’t and then I freaked out because we had so much sex since the lock-down started and I thought-”

“Damianos, stop babbling.” Laurent had opened his eyes and was now staring him down. “What you are saying is ridiculous. If I wouldn’t have wanted it, I would have told you.”

Damen shut his mouth with a click.

“I understand that others might have that problem but rest assured, we don’t. The reasons for that are manyfold but the most important one is that I completely trust you to take my needs into consideration. If I wouldn’t have wanted the sex, I would have told you and you would have accepted it and still loved me just as much.”

He only nodded while Laurent rolled from his back onto his side. “I was ready and wanting every time you approached me, Damen. And I know, I let you decide when to have sex most of the time, but we decide together if we have sex, isn’t that right?”

“Yes,” Damen breathed and then he was kissing Laurent and pushing him back against the mattress.

\---

Laurent felt so thoroughly fucked out he suspected he couldn‘t move a muscle for the next week. Since their talk two days ago, Damen had taken every opportunity to show him exactly how much he was wanted and desired.

Laurent felt a smile tug at his lips. He wasn‘t complaining at all. Especially not when Damen showered him in kisses afterwards, caressed his back and sucked small bruises into the skin.

“Sweetheart? Do you want to join me?“ Damen stood in the doorframe, his shoulders almost filling it out completely. He had a amused expression on his face. Laurent rolled onto his back. Even that small movement ached.

A humming sound left his mouth. Damen chuckled, "What does this mean?“ Laurent sighed, closed his eyes and just lounged in the luxurious feeling of his heavy, loose limbs and blissful satisfaction. "That means that I would love to join you but I am afraid that I won’t be able to handle the staircase right now.“

He turned his head again and saw Damen outright grinning. "I could assist you.“ Laurent contemplated if he should take Damen up on his offer of carrying him down the stairs, that would, however, mean that he took his chances with his own self-control. Whenever Damen carried him it did something to him and he didn‘t know if he could take another round of fucking right now.

"Please.“ He wasn’t self-preserving enough to dismiss an opportunity of Damen carrying him. He loved the feeling of Damen against him. He was just so solid and firm and strong. Laurent melted against his chest when Damen carried him down and then outside.

"I put up our hammock, I thought you might like it.“ Damen‘s voice was soft and tender in his ear and Laurent forced his eyes open. He turned his head on one broad shoulder and blinked slowly. Damn, the last days truly did a number on him. Even his thoughts were slow like molasse.

Damen walked towards the hammock and put Laurent down. He tenderly brushed a strand of hair out of Laurent‘s eyes. His gaze was so soft and adoring that Laurent felt his heart flutter. "By the gods, I love you.“ Damen said things like that so easily. Laurent smiled at him. "I love you too.“

Damen bent down to kiss him. "Shouldn’t you start your work-out? I want to watch.“ Laurent waved a hand and Damen laughed. "Yes, your Highness.“ Then he went to his training set-up.

Laurent tapped his phone screen and logged in to Damen’s live-stream. First of all he saw that the hammock was also partly in the frame. But instead of being disturbed by that he just lay back. His head was not visible, yet his dangling hand was. People noticed immediately.

Damen and Laurent both ignored it. It wasn’t as if Laurent wanted to be mysterious or Damen wanted to keep him a secret. Rather, Laurent didn‘t want to be the center of attention while Damen started his video channel. Now however, people got more and more curious and Laurent suspected that he would draw less attention if he just showed his face.

Laurent watched the stream in parallel to Damen, it had the advantage that he saw the front and back of his boyfriend while he trained. Both views were equally delicious.

At the end of the stream, Damen sat down in a relaxed posture and saw all the comments on Laurent‘s arm, which still dangled from the edge of the hammock. He laughed and shrugged it off.

Laurent decided right then to get it over with. Damen had already assured him that it wouldn‘t bother him in the least and now was as good a time as every other. He swung his legs over the edge. Clad in blue linen trousers, he knew his legs went on for days. He stood and walked over. On the screen of his phone he saw how his figure came closer and closer.

He walked past Damen, brushed his fingers through the sweaty curls and then said, "I‘ll be in my office.“

He knew that his face was visible, he also knew that he still looked a bit debauched. His hair was mused and his lips most likely still a bit redder than they normally were. Yet, he didn‘t care in the least. Especially when Damen smiled at him as if he had hung the stars and the moon just for him.

\---

Damen was still overwhelmed by the response Laurent’s appearance on his live stream provoked. His followers lost it. He could relate. Truly. Laurent was beyond breath-taking. Especially, when he smiled.

Right now, Laurent read something on his phone, a grin splitting his face. And Damen knew he never saw someone more beautiful than Laurent in that particular moment. He was finishing their dinner and just enjoyed seeing his boyfriend so relaxed and happy. 

“Stop staring, Damen.” Laurent didn’t even look up when he said it. 

“I am just admiring you from afar.” Damen grinned and didn’t bother to try and avert his gaze. He knew he would persevere for a maximum of five minutes. 

Laurent laughed softly. “You are cute.”

Damen felt the blush rise. Laurent was in a very good mood apparently. He busied himself with cutting the tomatoes for their salad.

“Are you embarrassed?”, Laurent asked giddily, “are you blushing?” He fixated his gaze on Damen and tracked every movement.

“No.” Damen didn’t dare to lift his eyes. He knew he was a horrible liar. 

“Let’s pretend I believe you.” Laurent still smiled and then he waved his phone at Damen. “Did you read the comments to your video?”

Damen shook his head. “No. I could listen to shrieks and excited shouts for ten minutes straight after you appeared and then I wanted to cook dinner. I know that people are absolutely overwhelmed by your beauty.”

Laurent shrugged. “It runs in the family.”

That much was true. Damen knew Laurent’s brother and his parents. It was really not surprising that the blond man looked so damn gorgeous.

“What do they write?”

“Should I read the best ones aloud?”

Damen nodded. “Yes, I really want to know.”

“Lola123 wrote: **I can’t believe we were withheld Laurent’s beauty up until know. I didn’t even know anyone could look like that.** ”

Damen laughed. Lola was one of his most regular subscribers. “She was always a fan of yours.”

“Well, I see no reason that she shouldn’t be.” Any other person would have shrugged, but Laurent only raised one perfect eyebrow in challenge.

“Me neither.” Damen couldn’t suppress the fond smile he shot at Laurent. He grimaced, as if to tell him he should stop to be so sappy, and turned back to the comment section.

“CrazyL wrote: **OMG I KNEW he is blond. But have you seen his FACE? If I were Damen I wouldn’t spend so much time doing some video.** And Nik replied: **Believe me, they spend enough time doing other things.** Somehow I think he wants to insinuate something with that comment.”

Now Damen couldn’t contain his laugh anymore. “He can’t squabble with you in person so he does it in the comment section. You two miss each other, and neither of you can convince me from the opposite.”

The shocked gasp from Laurent was mostly an act. “How can you say something so offending? Are you trying to break my heart?”

Damen laughed again. “Come on, dinner is ready.”

Laurent put the phone away and they ate their food. Damen observed the other man very closely. He loved to watch Laurent eat. It was amazing how he could enjoy food. This was also the primary reason for Damen to take up cooking. He just wanted to see Laurent enjoy his meals.

“I love you, you know.”

Laurent looked up to him. “I love you too. Very much so.” His blue eyes sparkled, the smile on his lips was achingly beautiful. He was so endearing that Damen had to pinch his thigh to make sure that he wasn’t dreaming.

“Now listen to the next comment. It’s from someone called HJ777: **This man is epitome of perfection. I would love to see Damen and him together in person.** He had a lot of replies where people screamed and agreed and started a petition to get a meet and greet with us.” Laurent sounded so amused Damen could listen to him for hours. 

“You certainly made sure my followers are properly occupied with thoughts of you. This is my reality, so they should just know how that feels.” Damen stood up and started to put away their plates, while Laurent observed him with rosy cheeks.

“Leave them, we should go upstairs.” He stood and started to tug Damen towards the stairs. Damen grinned and started to take the steps two at a time.

\---

Damen loved his job very much. He thrived on the fact that he could interact with people, help them and be flexible all at the same time. However, he really enjoyed his time at home with Laurent too. Normally they didn’t spend so much time together.

Laurent was busy, much busier than him, always on the run, doing important things, helping his brother and intimidating his competition with his overwhelming competence. The interns were in awe while they cowered in fear before him. Because Laurent’s intellect as well as his sharp tongue were legendary. He wasn’t patient, and he expected the best from the people around him.

Damen loved him with all his heart, mostly because he was such an intense and driven man. Laurent didn’t back down, Laurent didn’t give up and Laurent didn’t shy away from any challenge.

However, this also made their relationship complicated sometime. They prioritized their time differently. Sometimes, Damen was clingy while Laurent was not. Laurent was an evening person while Damen was a morning person. Laurent struggled with opening up and talking about his feelings while Damen always wore his heart on his sleeve and got emotional.

This forced isolation as the longest time they ever spent with each other. Damen discovered so many new things about his boyfriend he had never suspected before, and it was startling. He was worried if they got back to work again that nothing would have changed for Laurent. It would be horrible, because for him a lot changed.

He couldn’t go back to a time before the isolation and he couldn’t unsee what he observed through the last weeks. There was no way he could ignore how Laurent enjoyed really long, hot baths even in summer or how he could kneel in the dirt for hours in their backyard while gardening.

Damen would never be able to ban the image of Laurent, lounging in the softest pajamas he owned in their bed for hours while reading a book from top to cover or how he strolled through their house in Damen’s too big shirts that slipped from his collarbones or how his hair grew out to curl around his face.

He couldn’t forget how Laurent softened up towards him more and more. Laurent didn’t need to put up his walls, he didn’t have to hide his emotions away and that caused him to show them more often on a daily basis.

Like right now. Laurent had curled up on their outdoor lounge, read a book and chuckled while turning the page. Damen stared transfixed. Usually, Laurent’s laughs were precious rare things, not often witnessed, not even by him. Smiles, yes, but laughs? No.

His boyfriend felt his stare most likely, because he looked up and his smile was blinding. “Damen, are you coming to spend some time with me finally?” he teased. He honestly teased and Damen felt as if he was transferred into a parallel universe. “Missed me, sweetheart?”

“How could I? You let your things lying all over the place, I am reminded of you every time I look up.” They had had this discussion quite a few times already, where Laurent complained about Damen spreading his things all over the place without putting them away again.

Once Laurent was so enraged because he tripped over Damen’s boots that he shouted for ten minutes straight before going into his office, slamming the door and ignoring Damen for two hours before he had calmed down again.

Now however, he laughed and teased and carelessly piled all of Damen’s things in his sports room, where Damen was the only person bothered by them. It was a good look on him, although Damen knew he wouldn’t be happy if he couldn’t be the demanding, intimidating business persona he was at his job.

Damen grinned sheepishly and then sat down beside the blond man and started to caress his feet, angles and calves. Laurent hummed happily and refocused on his book. Damen closed his eyes and for the moment the world was perfect.

\---

Damen wasn’t sure what would be expected from him. A reporter contacted him to do a video call interview about his sudden fame and he had agreed, what would it hurt? He just never expected the reporter to be this focused on his relationship with Laurent.

Laurent who sat across from him while he did the interview, was trying to read a book, but by the look on his face he was to busy gritting his teeth and keeping from telling the nosey bloke exactly what he thought of him to really read.

“Your followers call you two Lamen, what do you say about that?” Damen sighed. “Mr. Hammon, are we here to discuss my relationship or how I integrate my knowledge as chiropractor in my videos? I can, once again, only underline that I have no interest gossiping about my relationship in this interview.”

The man ignored him but asked a real question for once and Damen hoped that this would be the turning point for the interview. He was wrong, so very wrong. “Is it true that your partner is a lawyer? With a face like that I can’t imagine him being any good. Is that the reason for you to start with the videos?”

This was obviously enough for Laurent to snap. He stood, walked around the table, put one hand on Damen’s shoulder and leaned down. The moment his face appeared on the screen, the interviewer sucked in a sharp breath. Damen almost grinned.

Laurent looked beautiful like always, however the quarantine had softened the edges around him and Damen had almost forgotten how intimidating his boyfriend could be. Because now Laurent looked exactly like the asshole lawyer he could be if he wanted to.

“I suggest you contact the legal department of your newspaper because what you did here is not at all what had been prematurely agreed upon and I heard every single word. And, as you already helpfully pointed out, my profession is in the law.” He raised an eyebrow.

“If you doubt my capabilities as lawyer, I think you are not only disrespectful and noisy but also rather incompetent at your job. I suggest doing your research first before asking insulting questions. So, I recommend in your best interest to stop this farce or I might be tempted to sue your paper and even in the best case, where you and your employer would be found innocent of any charges I put against you, it wouldn’t do your image any good. Did I phrase that clear enough for your intellectual capabilities Mr. Hammond?”

Damen didn’t wait for an answer, he closed his laptop without saying goodbye and drew Laurent in for a kiss. “I love you. Gods, it’s almost unbelievable how much I love you.” Laurent rolled his eyes. “I would have loved to hear his answer, but you are always so impatient. You could have kissed me to your hearts content two minutes later and I would have had the pleasure to hear him stutter through some excuses.”

Damen laughed. “And people still think you are not devious enough for you’re your job.” Laurent shrugged elegantly and straightened up again. Damen admired how the now longer hair brushed his shoulders, that was honestly one of the best things coming from the quarantine. Laurent’s longer hair.

He didn’t see a reason to restrain himself, so he stood and buried his fingers in the long, blond strands. He tilted Laurent’s head up and kissed him softly. “Sorry for ruining your fun but I will make it up to you.”

“And how do you plan to do that?” Laurent nipped at his jaw with a grin and Damen felt how he melted. He felt like goo. It was a rather nice feeling. “I will cook the fish pie you liked do much the last time and I will bring you freshly squeezed orange juice at your afternoon meeting with Auguste.”

Laurent drew back, framed Damen’s face with his hands and grinned, like he had done rarely before the quarantine and did more and more since they were confined to their own four walls.

“You are honestly the best man in the whole world Damianos. If I could love you more than I already did, I would do so now.”“ Damen laughed. "Good to know that my cooking skills do spark such enthusiastic declarations.”

He bent down and kissed his partner again before making his way for the kitchen to start with an afternoon snack for Laurent while he had his meeting.


End file.
